. hello, welcome to al jazeera america. i'm morgan radford in new york. >> authorities file murder charges against a man who they say opened fire inside tear at los angeles international airport. police say paul ciancia was dropped off at lax before he opened his bag, whipped out an assault rifle and shot gerardo i. hernandez. paul ciancia walked away only to return and shoot gerardo i. hernandez again. killing the veteran and father of two and injured others. the 22-year-old is in police custody at a hospital and could face the death penalty. >> the healthcare.gov is down again for maintenance right now.

technicianses have been repairing it since seat. google and oracle experts will have been consulted. >> for those of you happy to get an extra hour of sleep - here is something else to look forward to this morning - a solar eclipse. a rare crescent-shaped sound will be visible for those living on the east coast. it will move across the atlantic, and sweep across central africa. i'm morgan radford. thank you for joining us. see you again at 7am eastern. >> got evening i'm joie chen

welcome to "america tonight sex th" theweekend edition. we have did h dedicated our attention to sexual assault on campus. there is the repeated belief that campus rape is often the miscommunications and allegations that result to murky he said she said. ttonight we have us visit oxidental campus in california. for some reason it's impossible for law enforcement and school officals to adjudicate. >> rape is rape, not misunderstanding. sometimes by students that prey on fellow students and get it awith it time and time again. our report on the serial rape of the from our correspondent. oxidental college in los angeles. private and pricey is known for

it's commitment to social justice. it's more striking that this campus is ri rivet with rape and sexual assault. much of i allegedly committed but repeat offenders. >> i ended up walking back to his place with him. once we were there he raped me. en in the shadows two students that asked us to hide their faces told us they were raped, not by strangers abou but by men hiding in plain site. sight. their fellow students. you clear will you said, no. >> >> yes. >> he kept forcing himself on you. >> yes. >> this junior was raped in harry reiherfirst year. the outrage dre grew when she found out he was already sanctioned for sexual assaultment. sexual assault. >> he was already sanctioned for sexual assault.

>> what was the sanction. >> i think it involved writing a paper of some kind. some kind of research or reflection. >> he was not suspended. >> no. >> and he was not expelled. >> no. >> serial rape is the norm on college campuses. >> here at objection objection dental objection dental we have three or four that said they were raped. >> this teacher has been teaching at objectio oxidental for seven years. they said they did not intend to do so but students started to comcome to them and started to pour their hearts out. >> i have been at the school since 2007 and i have talked to dozens of women that have been raped and sexually battered and

stalked and skybe cyber bullied. >> last year they filed a complaint with the department of education of in it 42 students alleged they were raped or sexual assaulted in since 2009. >> it's been open season on the female students at oxidental. >> the same day gloria allred came forward with a suit. >> the the person who raped me was found responsible for raping three women and yet he will be allowed to come back to oxie in the fall. >> in may i watched as pie my rapist shook the dean's hand and received his diploma. also another woman was raped by

a repeat offender after a campus dance. >> there was drinking involved and i ended up being taken home by someone that i don't remember being taken home by. and ended up having sexual relations with him without my knowing. i didn't remember it in the morning. >> did you report this? >> i didn't report it for two months. did this guy assault other women? >> yes we know that he has been found guilty of sexually assaulting another woman. >> i think what is most troubling about this woman's rape is that had he been expelled and kicked off the campus the first time he was found responsible for sexual assault, her rape simply would not have happened. >> such troubling stories of sexual predators committing multiple assaults are not that unusual. in fact researchers tell us the overwhelming majority of rapes on college campuses are committed by repeat offenders. >> each of the

serial offenders had on average 14 victims. david lysik travels the country. his pioneering research revealed a remarkable fact. >> the vast majority of sexual assaults on campuses over 90% are perpetrato perpetrated by sl offenders. >> in his study in 2002 he asked nearly 2000 male students about their sex lives. six percent of the men described their sexual encounters that met the legal definition of rape. meaning they had sexual intercourse without the consent of the women. either using force or alcohol. out of that group the majority had assaulted multiple women. >> the serial offenders were row prolific. each the offender was six.

>> the serial rapist admitted taking advantage of the vulnerable women. they were cold and calculating. >> serial rapist have perfected techniques and perfected ways of identifying who on campus were the most vulnerable and who were to target and prey on. >> he showed us an interview based on an interview he conducted at duke university. here an actor speaks the exact word of a student describing how he invited a freshman girl to the fraternity party. >> the minute she walked into the door of the party i was honored. she was good looking and we started drinking together and i could tell she was nervous. i could tell she was nervous she was drinking the stuff fast. >> what was she drinking? >> some kind of punch we made. the usual. >> what does that exchange tell you. >> it's clear cut. they know what they are doing.

they are targeting fresh men. men. they are grooming them by inviting them to this special party invitation only, it's a real set up. >> and then they have things prepared at this party. >> in havthere have been a milln college parties like that. it doesn't mean it's rape. >> not when you give someone a drink and they get intoxicated and you bring another drink and you give then that drink and they become more intoxicated and you say, listen let's go upstairs. and they are so intoxicated they can barely stand up. >> she was really woozy by that time and i brought up another drink and sat her on the bed. i didn't expect her to get on me that way. i started leaning on her and i pulled off her clothes and sometime she passed out. and her eyes were closed. >> what happened? >> [bleep]. >> did you have to lean on her.

>> i had my arm across her chest, like this. that is how i did it. >> when you hear this, what does it tell you? >> he is describing a rape that involves in many ways more overt violence you would see in many non-stranger rape. >> this is not a misunderstanding? >> this is not a misunderstanding, no. >> these ways are an common afrian by the students who were assaulted. >> when you look back did you think you were set up or applied with liquor. >> absolutely. i think he scanda scanned the rd saw someone that was clearly intoxicated and started to strike up a conversation with them and continued to provide me with drinks. >> the president of the objectio oxidental college declined an on camera interview. he did say resent changes in policy with a 24-hour hot line

and advocates fo people of for people of rape and sex crimes. and five months after this explosive press conference, oxidental quietly settled with ten students keeping the financial details confidential. the professors that filed a federal complaint say at that the college has not established a clear bright line involving sex between students. >> i think the clearest definition of kon consent is a verbal consent. it would be a willing enthusiastic, yes. >> i think yes means yes should bbe a campaign slogan. and researcher lysak says they are at a critical cross roads. >> which route are they going to go. >> are they going to go the route of the catholic church or are they going to do better.

are they going to show they can respond to this with honesty and a commitment to do the right thing. >> a former top official told us that collegues like oxidental don't have the expertise to investigate sex crimes that confound police and prosecutors. >> but the voices here suggest that far too often sexual predators on campus get away with it and even more troubling the research suggests that they do it again and again. >> sunday on "america tonight" a third discussion on sex crimes on campus in an american tonight town hall at 5:00 even on al jazeera america. >> straight ahead on "america tonight" trouble in paradise. a caribbean island the latest battle ground on the war on drugs.

what happens when social media uncovers unheard, fascinating news stories? >> they share it on the stream. >> social media isn't an after-thought, it drives discussion across america. >> al jazeera america's social media community, on tv and online. >> this is your outlet for those conversations. >> post, upload and interact. >> every night share undiscovered stories. >> from our headquarters in new york, here are the headlines this hour. >> al jazeera america is the only news channel that brings you live news at the top of every hour. >> a deal in the senate may be at hand and just in the nick of time. >> thousands of new yorkers are marching in solidarity. >> we're following multiple developments on syria at this hour. >> every hour from reporters stationed around the world and across the country.

>> only on al jazeera america.

(vo) gripping films from the world's top documentary directors. tomorrow: it seemed like a normal adoption >> do you think this family has a lot of secrets? >> it's like there's an open book as far as the family goes. >> (son - off screen) i fully believe that i was adopted by strangers. (vo) until one day ... >> (son - off screen) i found out everything i thought i knew, was a lie. (vo) al jazeera america presents open secret >> for years we have heard the reports of health risk of led poisoning. led can chip away at the long term health and the development of their children. the world health organization reports that led poisoning is to plame foblame for 600,000 new cases of intellectual disabilities every

year. there is evidence that toxicity can be tied to high crime. >> it only took a few minutes for tamara rubin's son to be mouse on thpoisoned by led. but the dangers from the botched renovation job will haunt him for husband life. >> he used an open flame tore th to burn the paint off the home. pimy kids were poisoned but inhaling the fumes. aubi has severe learning disabilities and cannot read or attend school. his behavior is disturbing. >> a lot of violent behaviour. >> doctors have known for years that led is a severe neuro toxin in crowning children. young children.

>> even the lowest level of led has an impact and effect on the developing brain and in mostly the prefrontal area where you have judgment. >> there may be an impact on the higher functions later in life. >> aubi's parents worry about his future. >> we wonder if he is going to be okay on his own. i hope that he will be. but i don't know for sure. >> you know you look at the criminality link, with led exposure and you definitely wonder about what is going to happen. >> the criminallality link is a emerging body of work indicating that children exposed to led as pre-schoolers are at greater risk of juvenile delin del link we see. they found a strong historic link between led levels and crime.

>> what i found in my first study onf on violent crime in te united states is that it showed up with a remarkly good fit with a time lag of 23 years that the rise and fall of leddic led expn the united states seemed to track the rise and fall of the violent crime rate with a 23 year time line. >> once babies who brains were damaged with led reached their 20s have become violent criminals. nevin has duplicated his results. he believes that no other factor no changes in police factors or incarceration rates or economic conditions correlate so well with crime as led exposure. in richmond, california workers for a government let abatement program are hard at work stripping the old led contaminated paint off a house. there are an estimated 80 million houses in the u.s. containing led paint.

this kind of led abatement work has to be carried out very, very carefully. because even a tiny amount of led, just this much, could have a devastating effect on a child's brain. richmond is a low income, high crime city with lots of old housing. while the link between led and criminallality is controversial and disputed by criminallologists, the person who runs the led abatement program says she sees the connection on the street every y day. richmond has the highest incidence of violence and july juvenile del delinquency and poverty. it's hard to imagine this is a connection to early exposure to led hazards and the degraded

life degraded mumma humanity. >> today the toxic threat is not only concentrated in inner cities. pediatricians are seeing more cases in middle and upper income families. >> much of the older housing is in afluent areas now. and most of them were painted in the 20s and 30s and 40s and when you renovate the homes you expose the led underneath. >> that is exactly what happened to amount ub -- aubi rubin. she is now making a documentary. >> it's sad to me that it happened to my baby. what is sad to me that was eight years ago. this is still happening to families all the time. >> a silent danger robbing children of their futures. >> that report came to us from

rob reynolds. >> as the united states amply amplifies their tactics on the drug trade across the border. they are becoming more reliant on the third border. >> drugs from latin america can head to the mainland without going through customs. not all of the drugs are leaving the island and more and more are being consumed locally. and local officals have said it's a public crisis. >> this is b is an unannounced h for drugs on a ferry coming from another caribbean island. it's a routine process. port ric puerto rico has become a major transit hub. and according to the police this isn'is an average fine. 15-pound of pure cocaine. the person realized we were here.

so they came and left the backpack in the bathroom and went walking out like any other person. the drug runner lost his car dough. dough -- cargo here it's worth $140,000 and in miami or new york it could sell for half a million. >> you must congratulate the dog he is good and efficient. >> the u.s. federal government reports an increase in drugs infractions over the years. but that is only a fraction of what makes it into the island. the lieutenant fights the drug trade on the streets of san juan. a murder victim was just found here in withere with drugs in h. the police are now checking for suspects. >> if you enter into this world you will die. it's like a death sentence. sooner or later someone will kim you. kim -- kill you.

the drug influx here has caused the homicide rate to spike. 1,000 people a year are murdered in peurto rico. the lieutenant says most victims are young men that want to get rich quick. they prefer the easy life and easy money. but their lives will be short because they will die. everybody thinks that it won't happen to them, but that is never true. there will always be someone waiting. >> the police are waging a constant battle. more and more drugs coming onto the island the prices are dropping and there is more business to fight for. each night in san juan there are people fighting a different side of the drug war. many narcotics stay on the island for local consumption. these volunteer medics and

social workers consider drug additio addiction a public health crying sis. >> these are the people that are the most marginalized in our country. what he would do we do with love and the best intent. with the hope that at some point they will stop using drugs. >> it's not hard to find drug addicts on the streets here. but the doctor is one of the few people that tries to help. the team looks after the people lying iliving in society's shad. they take the dirty needles and give them clean ones. >> they provide on site medical treatment and encourage detox programs. they attend to 100e addicts each night. >> this is what is happening to our society. people often blame the government. which is somewhat responsible for this. but the root of the problem is definitely at the family

level. >> roberto is 31 years old. he started smoking marijuana at 16 and using heroin at 18 and he is now hooked on ketamine. a powerful anaesthetic that is used as a horse tranquilizer. >> i know if i keep doing this i will end up dead. i know what i'm doing. i'm paying for my own death. >> the side effects of withdrawal are so painful he is afraid to fall a you sleep. sleep. he wakes up to vomitting and unbearable headache as the drug wears off. he is worried that giving it up altogether will kill him but he is willing to give it a try. >> i am willing to get clean it's better than dying like a dog on the street. i know with the help of god i can do it. >> the well intentioned and well received by the people they serve. but as soon as they leave the

drugs come back out. roberto once moved to miami to kick the habit. he has a wife and five-year-old daughter there. he was studying to be an accountant. he came back to help husband dying grandfather and he never left. >> iit feels really good but i know it's bad for you. social workers and state authorities anded and addicts themselves have different reasons for why people start using. >> but all agree that drug addiction is rising and no one knows how to stop it. >> when "america tonight" continues we'll tell you why one of the most dangerous cities in on inside story, we bring together unexpected voices closest to the story, invite

hard-hitting debate and desenting views and always explore issues relevant to you.

>> camden, new jersey was once was a bustling industrial city

but now the factories are gone. and residents have no choice but it make ends meet. the city's police department went through one of the most radical over hauls in the states. the streets are safer and the residents argue they are being unjustly targeted and profiled. >> a typical block party in camden, new jersey. music, food, families out enjoying warm weather. for maria rayes it is a an opportunity to gather her grand children and other little ones and treat them. but for the kids with the street blocked off to the public, the real treat is a can chance to py freely outdoors. something they don't get to do o much. and is that is because they live in a city deemed one of america's most dangerous. under siege by violent crime.

>> i lost a sister, a stepson, a grandson and i lost a cousin through violence. >> reminders of lost lives here are everywhere. >> this is obie. this is where o bit. bie was shot. he was pi my grand son's best friend. and this one over here nico he was a good friend too. they both killed right here. >> born and raised in north camden raeyes laments the changes. camden was so sweet. you walk down the street in camden we used to leave our doors open and your our bikes e sidewalk. you can't do that now. >> camden is a snapshot of urban decay in america. with a population of 77,000 camden has lost more than one third of it's residents since 1950.

rated the poorest city in america last year. nearly half of all pool in -- people in camden live in poverty. >> the signs are obvious and the effect are deadly. hours before we ey arrived in camden a 5 53-year-old woman ws shot in her home. she was sitting on the sofa and the bullet came through her window. last year camden had the highest homicide rate for cities larger than 5 50,000. there are mor more 170 open air drug markets for users compounding the problem was a corrupt and ill effective police force. crippled by rampant absenteeism. >> your grandson was shot here in camden? >> yes. in an area that we would normally have had a police officer patrolling. the camden police chief just over saw what was the biggest

police department overhaul in the u.s. too broke to hire more officers. the city came up with a radical plan subsidized by the state. it fired all of it's 240 plus officers and dissolved the force and let the county replace it with a bigger police department. thompson hired some veteran officers but mostly took on new recruits with reduced benefits in order to avoid the terms of the union contract. >> we have 30% absenteeism on any given day. it was difficult. for the cop that did come to work they were generally working a 16-hour day. a lot of the cops you did have at work were at home and they were ordered in and so we could be on staffing levels to be able to provide some type of staffing levels out there. it was not a sustainable position. >> during crime filled night shifts there were a dozen cops patrolling the entire city and not enough to answer the 911

calls during the day. the hand over was controversial. city hall lost control of their police department. the city activists and some charge that was union busting andlill conceived. despite the protests the camden officals pushed ahead. many veterans chose not to apply to the new force. most of the new recruits come from the suburbs. critics of the transition say young rookies like him lack the experience and the skills to deal with the tough streets of camden. >> i'm here for the right reasons. i know that. i'm here to help people and i can't think of a better place that needs help and needs police services, quality police services than the city and residents of camden. >> between may and september this year homicides dropped 22% from the same time last year and shootings are down 11%.

police say it's thanks in big part to this. concentrated foot patrols in neighborhoods like parkside. something residents here haven't seen in decade. s. >> backing up the boots on the ground is the high-tech surveillance system. hundreds of closed circuit cameras track incidents in hot spots. >> we had a fight that was brewing and officers were monitoring this. and they already had units starting over toward this area. this individual pulls out a hand gun and he is going to shoot this individual below the waist. bang. and this guy takes off. nobody calls the police. since we had observed this, we were able to get them getting into this car and they pull out. and now you will see in a matter of 10 or 15 second we'll have the calvary coming down the street here and we'll be able to locate this vehicle and arrest these suspects.

>> for now officers are concentrated in a couple of high crime neighbourhoods. 100 graduates are expected out the academy in december. neighbourhoods will see more cops on the beat. and those cops will be cracking down on what police call quality of life offences. like loitering or vandalism. residents seem pleased to see more blew on their penalt block. but some take issue with police tactics. >> you can't ride bikes out here without lights or something like that. and nobody was used to that. >> i was on a bike without a light and i got a ticket for riding without a helmet and on the sidewalk. >> you think the new police are too strict. >> i moved out because my son was born. i started to come back around here and i saw all cops and the presence and mainly in the daytime and they seemed nice and everything. hi don't see much people in the corners and things like that.

the presence was good and then after two weeks of me living in here they are just harassing hag people. >> really. >> yeah they are just harassing people. just because a kid is a tee teer and he is on a corner doesn't mean he is selling drugs. he could be waiting for somebody or he could be lost. ask him nicely why are you on the corner? if he is smart with you it's different. but if the kid is not smart with you why get violent with the kid. >> it's friday night and sergeant diaz is heading out on the night shift. it's not long before a call comes in. reports of shots fire near a notorious housing project. he arrives with officers there looking for a shooter and no injuries. and this high-tech bubble unit monitoring the area. diaz explains there was

virtually no police presence here before the new force took over. in one of camden's toughest sections whitman park a squad car posted outside of this store offers security. zplrntioneither the cruiser or s would have been seen here at night in the past. and the same goes for the park on yorkship square in the fairview neighbourhood. before the transition it would be teaming with people including drug dealers, on a night like this. even with these successes the root cause of crime make winning this war difficult. >> we realize that the solutions that plague or city, the social inequities that cause crime to occur, are not going to be fixed with our pistol or pair of happenehandcuffs. what we are looking to do is empower the community to not feel imprisoned in their own homes. to leave their doorstep and come

on to their front step and let their kids play out in front of their homes. but to do that we have to be able to provide a secure enviroment for that. >> coming up here, when everything you thought you ever neknew turks turns out t to be . we preview the documentary "open there's more to financial news than the ups and downs of the dow. for instance, can fracking change what you pay for water each month? have you thought about how climate change can affect your grocery bill? can rare minerals in china affect your cell phone bill? or how a hospital in texas could drive up your healthcare premium? i'll make the connections from the news to your money real.

>> i'm phil torezz, coming up next on techknow. >> hike! >> america's favorite sport is

under fire. >> now, that impact simulated 100 g's of acceleration in your brain. >> it's the opponent no player can see. >> so the system is showing real-time impact. >> can science prevent concussions? >> i did my job and just had to sacrifice my brain to do it. >> a senator under investigation and only al jazeera america is there. uncovering the corruption opening the files... >> are you going to resign if your're indicted? >> breaking the story real reporting, this is what we do... al jazeera america >> imagine spending 18 years of your life leavin life believingw your family trait. you are a adopted member of a loving family. it's okay to be curious and find your biological parent. when that journey started for steve, he found quickly he had been kept in the dark of what

was otherwise an open secret. here is a thing about a place like kansas things can hide in these wide open spaces. hopes, lies, secrets. the sky is like a huge lid trapping everything inside my name is steve, and i was born in kansas. i whats a i documente a adoptedy jane who raised me on this farm along with their six daughters and two sons. i grew up leaving thing believing things in my family were a certain way. but when you turned 18 i found out everything i thought i knew was a lie. ♪

testing. >> all right this is for real. >> tell us what you want to know? >> did you ever think that -- do you know do you have any regrets? >> no. >> do you think you handled everything the way you wanted to handle it? >> i would have liked to have done more for him. how do you feel? yeah how do you feel about us. >> i sort of block it out of my head. >> i think i was angry because i felt like i was left out. no, you weren't. >> you don't know what it's like to be adopted. >> no. >> so i do. and the sense of oh well i appreciate them loving me and taking me in and gi giving me clothes and food and helping me grow. but they are not my real parents. my real parent are -- well i didn't know. >> well i was always assumed that you already new because the

kids our kids would have told him. well that's strange. i can't believe they kept a secret like that for so long. >> not only did they keep a secret. this is a small community. it was an open secret. everybody knew about it but nobody talked about it. >> yeah. >> it's small towns. >> i'm the only one that didn't know about it was me. [laughter] >> i get why my mom and dad are laughing. they are nervous. i would be too. growing up i always wondered why my mom and dad wanted me after having so many kids of their own. but my childhood was great. mom was in charge at home and dad spent his days out in the fields. we lived eight miles from town. but all you could do there was gas up your truck and go to mass. so we spent most of our time together.

at home. but once our family secrets unralpunravel i couldn't be in s anymore. so i left. >> the explore behind the "the open secret" steve this was a personal journey why did you see decide to make this movie. >> in some ways it was an unburdening for myself of course and also for my family. my siblings, i have six sisters and two brothers were all burdened with this secret for so long, the community that i dreww up in was also told by their families to keep the secret. and i felt like it was a story that needed to be told.

and that story i needed to tell and i needed to let my family tell. and i also wanted other family ies to not fall trapped to the layers that secrets create. e one secret lead to another secret and another secret. i felt if i was able to tell this story about this secret another family might see this and say, it's not abort it. not -- worth it. let's get it out in the open and let's talk about it. my family didn't talk about it for a long, long time and resentment and si suspicion grew over time. and i wanted to find a way to stop that and help others to stop that as well. >> i have to point out we have not given away the secret yet. and i don't know how far you want to go in doing that in this little preview. but there is quite a secret about it. and it's a secret that is known eventually to you but long before to other people.

people in your life and your friends and girlfriend even? >> everybody new. everybody that i dre grew up wih knew the secret. i'm fine to divulge the secret here and it's divulged quickly in the film. the film is the path after the sea yet. secret. >> i found out that my sister was my mother and i was raised by my grandparents. and i was told at a young age i was adopted by strangers. and everybody that i dre grew up with knew but me. the community was able to keep this secret for a long, long time. which i find absolutely amazing. i don't think that would happen today. >> your parents too seemed to be at least displaying that they were surprised that you hadn't heard about this earlier. were they cooperative in the making of this movie? >> they were. i don't think they knew what i

was doing. to be fair i don't think i knew what i was doing either. >> what do you mean you didn't know what you were doing. you new wer knew you were filmi. >> i didn't know i was going to make a film. >> the first interview that you see in the clip that you showed, that was the first interview that i did. the reason i did that interview and the rei roone reason i did n camera so my parents would take what i was asking themmer is seriously. my family is not the kind of family that you sit around the table at dinner and ask frank conversations about your life. i knew if i created a almost 60 minutes-like style environment and approached it like a journalist which is what i am by trade, they would take what i was asking and doing seriously.

>> it was an approach to a tempt to get the truth from them and hopefully not have them dodge the difficult questions i was going to ask. it was only after a period of time after i showed this footage to other journalists and friends of mine that do make films said it's an intriguing story. when you go to talk to your brothers and sisters and other members of the community you should take a camera along. and i di did and it shaped up ta story i could tell. >> it's a fascinating story for you and your family. steve thanks very much for being with us here. >> thank you. steve's documentary, "open secret" will air sunday night at 9:00 on al jazeera america. >> fascinating non-verbal communication meets the fire of indian dance. they are moves to take decade to master we'll meet the revere ed

>> while you were asleep,

>> now on one of the oldest dance forms in the world choreographed by some of the oldest performers of it. >> the fall festival of the india art brought dance from india to the shakespeare theater in washington. we sat down with two performers

whose love of dance are truly interbeeintertwined. thanks to the chorus line of the bollywood movie and the stunning performance of miss america 201. 2013. young secret clad women enter energetically dancing to chart toppers. >> when people arrived at the shakespeare theater in washington, d.c. they hoped to see some of india's most sought after performers. they probably weren't expecting 770-year-old's. you both have been dancing for how many years? >> almost 60 years. >> almost 60 years. >> and you quite that long. >> the same. >> sixty years as well. >> one day senior to him. 61 years. >> i started in 1962.

♪ the two are performers in in daniel singh's fall festival of the arts. >> it's common in indian dance to see older dancers. we have had five nights of the festival and the youngest dancer was in his late 30s. but everyone else was over 60. >> in sharp contrast to the early ca careers of ballet dancs in indian classical dance, age brings more reverence. >> as you mature it brings in a different quality to the dancer. the expressive part becomes very much more important and the experience in life, the more you experience life it brings more maturity to your expression on

stage. >> she is often called the bra rus famous indian dancer. she is a famed dancer. she began dancing at age 4. that was nearly 60 years ago. >> you don't have to finish when you are 30. you start when you are 45 in a way. we are very much with the gravity. we work with the force of the gravity. we can't stamp out the concept of rhythm. the concept of right almos rhyt, very strong. and enunciate the rhythm of the tapping of the feet. what is very special about indian dance is the use of facial expression. and hand gestures. and as the body becomes becomes frail.

you use your facial expression like crying or anger. or shooing a tiger. everything we can sit and do with our eyes and all of that. so even at the age of 90 or 95 or 100 if your eyes and facial muscles can be moved, we can communicate by sitting and the people will enjoy. >> that is not the only reason older performers find so much success in classical indian dance. >> the indian dance is really really laird. layered. you have to know the music and the rid thumb and san skrit and you have to improve improvise on stage.

it's like a jazz musician, you spend years learning the scales. and in your 50s and 60s you finally master it because it talks so long to get there. >> for these two partners in dance and life have collaborated with musicians and choreographers as ravi shankar and the ballet company. there is one piece they have performed through their long careers the love story. show me now what is the most important part of the communication that you will show the audience tonight. >> the experience that start us. what is love. >> show me. >> there is a small secret here they say she is very annoyed because krishna companie comes late. ♪

>> he says get out. out you go. i don't need you anymore, you are being a cheat. ♪ >> and then he says please open your mouth. won't you? and giv give me a small kiss, wt you do that? ♪ your anger gone? yes, okay then let's go and be together. like that. >> that is wonderful. >> rather fantastic, they have a life all of their own. it's wonderful. >> even if i do the story every day, every day, i still feel fresh every time i go on stage. >> for the two who met while studying with the same teachers,

dance is far more than their livelihood. it's life itself. >> we perform together. we learn together and then we decided to marry and then it's been like really part of growing up. i just didn't know anything other than dancing. it was like breathing. >> retirement? their fans won't let them. >> well we wanted to actually retire, but the invitations started coming more and more. and no we want to see you. ♪ >> and that is sheila mcvicker reporting. >> that is it for us here on "america tonight" if you would like to comment on any of the stories you have seen here tonight log on to our website aljazeera.com/americatonight. yoplease join the conversation with us on twitter or on our

face box page. facebook page. good night and we'll have more of "america tonight" tomorrow. ♪ .